1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices for heating and/or cooling a substance, and more particularly to a portable container for heating or cooling the contents thereof. The present invention includes a first embodiment container having fluid channels in the walls thereof, and providing for the circulation of a relatively warmer or cooler fluid therethrough, respectively for heating or cooling the contents of the container. A reservoir container containing a relatively warmer or colder fluid is secured to the main container, and the fluid is circulated through the walls of the main container to heat or cool the contents thereof. A second embodiment includes heating and cooling modules selectively attachable to the container, for selectively heating and cooling the contents of the container through a thin, thermally conductive wall disposed between the module and the container.
2. Description of the Related Art
The need or desire to heat or cool a substance, particularly a beverage, has been recognized for a considerable time. Accordingly, various devices have been developed in the past for heating substances, and more recently for cooling various substances. Most such devices are relatively bulky (refrigeration units, stoves, etc.), and are not well adapted for use in heating or cooling a relatively small quantity of material, such as a single serving of a drink or the like.
Moreover, such devices as known in the prior art are generally relatively specialized, and are not capable of serving as either a heating or cooling device in the same apparatus. Accordingly, a need is seen for a cooling and heating container that utilizes a minimum of components to improve reliability, reduce its size, weight and cost of production, and ultimately make the end product more affordable to the general public. The device may make use of a universal container having at least one continuous thermal passage in the walls thereof for containing the beverage or other substance to be heated or cooled, and various accessories which may be selectively attached to the container to communicate with the thermal passage of the container. A second embodiment may include selectively attachable heating or cooling modules. A user of the device may install either a heating or cooling unit to the container, or a heat sink device as desired, in order to heat, cool, or maintain the temperature of the substance within the container. The various components should be capable of being secured together for storage, as desired. A discussion of the related art of which the present inventor is aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,991,628 issued on Jul. 11, 1961 to Harvey R. Tuck, titled "Refrigerating Apparatus," describes a device for cooling a relatively small, single container. The device includes a complex electrical circuit and selectively heats or cools the container by means of a plurality of thermocouples. Tuck describes the walls of the device as comprising a plastic foam material including a heat exchanging fluid cast therein, but does not describe any means of circulating the fluid through the walls, due to the foam plastic material used. In contrast, at least one embodiment of the present invention includes at least one fluid circulation passage within the walls of the container and means for the fluid to communicate between the heating or cooling units and the container, with another embodiment including interchangeable heating and cooling units removably attachable to the base of the container, none of which is disclosed by Tuck.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,310,953 issued on Mar. 28, 1967 to Joseph M. Rait, titled "Portable Refrigerator For Beverage Containers And The Like," describes a device having a thermoelectric array using the Peltier effect to heat and cool the device when electrical current is passed therethrough. The device is intended for heating or cooling a relatively large quantity of a beverage, as indicated by FIG. 2 and discussed in column 2, lines 46 through 49. No circulation system for passing heated or cooled fluid through the walls of the container is disclosed by Rait, nor is any interchangeable heating or cooling unit disclosed, which features are a part of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,626 issued on Mar. 23, 1982 to Joseph H. Donnelly, titled "Portable Beverage Chiller/Warmer," describe an insert for a relatively large beverage container, for heating or cooling the beverage within the container. The device utilizes a plurality of thermoelectric devices and the Peltier effect, to heat or cool the insert. While the container has double walls and an insulating space therebetween, Donnelly does not disclose the use of a heat exchange medium (refrigerant or coolant fluid, etc.) circulating within the walls of the container, as provided by at least one embodiment of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,019 issued on Jan. 1, 1991 to Carole L. Hicks et al., titled "Solar Powered Portable Food Container," describes a device using a thermoelectric array to selectively heat or cool the interior of a container, and a photoelectric cell array and electrical storage battery for electrical power. Hicks et al. do not disclose any selectively attachable and removable heating or cooling units, nor are any passages provided in the walls of the container, as provided in the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,258 issued on Aug. 27, 1991 to Shaam P. Sundhar, titled "Drinking Container," describes an individual drink container including a thermoelectric chip therein. Reversal of electrical current through the chip results in the heating or cooling of the chip, and thermally conductive materials in contact therewith, as desired. As in the other devices discussed above, no means of circulating a heating or cooling fluid through the walls of the container is disclosed, nor is any means of selectively attaching or removing a separable heating or cooling unit, which features form parts of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,479 issued on Oct. 29, 1991 to Amatzia Carmi et al., titled "Thermoelectric Device For Heating Or Cooling Food And Drink Containers," describes a device using thermoelectric means for heating and cooling a chamber into which a container may be removably placed. No heat exchange channels disposed within the walls of the container are disclosed by Carmi et al., nor is any means of removably and selectively affixing either a heating or a cooling device to the container, disclosed by Carmi et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,301,508 issued on Apr. 12, 1994 to W. Henry Kahl et al., titled "Thermoelectric Portable Container," describes a rectangular chest having an electrically powered heating and cooling unit removably attached thereto. The specific principle of operation of the heating and cooling unit, is not disclosed by Kahl et al. This "thermoelectric power module" is recessed into the container, thereby taking up valuable space that could otherwise be used to store food or beverages. The container is double walled and the walls ". . . may be . . . filled with any suitable insulation material . . ." (column 4, lines 28-29). However, no channels for conducting a heat exchanging fluid through the walls, are provided in the Kahl et al. container, as provided in the present invention. Moreover, at least one embodiment of the present thermoregulating container provides a separate reservoir module which fluidly communicates with the passages in the walls of the present container, unlike the Kahl et al. device. The Kahl et al. container is also much larger and bulkier than the present individual serving container.
French Patent Publication No. 2,501,349 published on Sep. 10, 1982 to Rene Grandi et al. describes a portable refrigerator that uses a Peltier effect thermal element. The device has two compartments, with one larger than the other, and a lid having variable thickness. The lid may be placed with the thicker portion contacting the partition between the two compartments to separate them, or may be turned around with the thinner portion across the partition, to allow the two compartments to communicate with one another. The Peltier effect thermoelectric device provides only for cooling one (or both) chambers, with heat escaping through the lid to the ambient atmosphere. No heating and cooling channels disposed within the walls of the device, nor removable and interchangeable heating and cooling elements, are apparent in the French Patent Publication, which features are provided for in the present invention.
British Patent Publication 2,169,693 published on Jul. 16, 1986 to Qun-Min Lu, titled "A Drink Cooler," describes a refrigeration unit having a relatively small liquid container permanently installed in the top thereof. Cooling coils are disclosed within the walls of the refrigeration unit which cradles the liquid container. However, the coolant coils are permanently connected with the refrigeration system of the device, and cannot be removed with the container, as provided in the present invention.
Finally, German Patent Publication No. 4,028,658 published on Mar. 14, 1991 to Werner Cox describes a thermally insulated box for retaining the temperature of comestibles. The container uses a Peltier effect thermoelectric device, as in most of the devices of the prior art discussed further above. No channels for conducting a heat exchange fluid through the walls of the container are disclosed, nor is any means for separating the cooling apparatus from the container disclosed, both of which features are provided in the present thermoregulating container.
None of the above noted inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.